Performance and design of shear connectors in composite beams with parallel profiled sheeting at elevated temperatures

Abstract

This paper describes an extensive experimental and numerical study conducted to evaluate the thermo-structural response of shear connectors embedded in composite slabs with steel sheeting parallel to the steel beam, with particular focus on opentrapezoidal profiles. For this purpose, eight push-out tests were carried out at different levels of temperature. A threedimensional finite element model was developed in Abaqus and its accuracy was validated against the experimental measurements collected as part of this study. The model was then used to perform a parametric study to gain insight into the structural response at different temperatures. The experimental and numerical results were then used to evaluate the accuracy of available European guidelines for predicting the capacity of shear connectors at elevated temperatures (when embedded in composite slabs with the profiled sheeting parallel to the steel beam). Finally, a new design equation was proposed to calculate the degradation factor defining the resistance of shear connectors for different levels of temperature.